"I feel like the odd one out in my own family": The family roles we play, and how to rewrite the script

Welcome back to Dial Emma! Each week, I'll be answering your dilemmas with honesty, empathy, and a few therapeutic truth bombs to help you make sense of life's stickiest moments. If you've ever wished you had a therapist in your back pocket, Dial Emma is here to help.

In this week’s episode, I'm exploring the complex family roles that shape who we become, and how hard it can be to step outside them.

Firstly, we hear from listener has spent her life as “the responsible one” - the organiser, the fixer, the steady sister who always keeps things together. But now she wonders what it would mean to stop playing that part. Can she step into her own light without feeling like she’s abandoning her sister?

Our second dilemma comes from someone who has built a very different life from the one she grew up in - a life of comfort and success that feels at odds with her working-class roots. She finds herself hiding her achievements to avoid standing out, torn between loyalty to her past and honesty about her present.

If you have a dilemma for Emma, please fill out this form. 

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Dial Emma is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Lauren Brook.

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Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrell

Dial Emma @dialemmapodcast

Email: contact@dial-emma.uk